London is a large metropolitan area of over 7 million people, and there are many excellent attractions there for visitors. There are also many interesting places to visit in the countryside surrounding London; many nearby towns and attractions make good day trips from London. Here are some of my favorites.
One popular day trip from London is to visit Salisbury, Stonehenge, and Bath; most tour companies will take you to these three places as a package. You can take a bus or train to Salisbury, where you can see the magnificent Salisbury Cathedral, a medieval church that has Britain’s tallest spire. The cathedral, built in the 1200s, houses an original copy of the Magna Carta brought there by King John’s brother, who is buried in the cathedral, and a clock that dates back to the 1300s. Around the cathedral are The Close, a park-like area, and wonderful ancient houses full of history; if you walk around the city, you will see many old buildings and churches of interest.
Stonehenge is about 10 miles from Salisbury, to the north, and you can get there by bus. Since no one really knows for certain what purpose Stonehenge served, the site has remained mysterious. It’s believed that the circular ring of large, upright stones is about 5,000 years old, dating back to the Neolithic period, and no one knows how the stones got to the site. Because of previous abuse of the stones, you must stay on a path that encircles the monument, but you can take some surprisingly excellent photos of Stonehenge, even with crowds of tourists there. There is an information center from which you can get an audio tour that will tell you about the history of Stonehenge. The surrounding countryside is lovely, with rolling, green fields full of herds of sheep, hedgerows, and even Sting’s country house, Lake House in Wiltshire, which is a few miles from Stonehenge.
Bath is a charming town that has several attractions. The name of the town comes from the baths the occupying Romans built around the hot mineral springs found there, and the improvements the Victorians made after the baths were rediscovered. Take the very interesting audio tour, and it will lead you through the underground rooms, showing you the temple to Sulis Minerva, the large pool called The Great Bath, the Sacred Spring, the sauna rooms, and artifacts from Roman times. While you can’t swim in the baths today (and wouldn’t want to!), you can taste the water; it comes up to a fountain in the Pump Room, a restaurant that overlooks the baths. The water is very green, and tastes strongly of minerals; you can buy the water bottled in the gift shop.
Bath Center has quite a few museums, such as the fascinating Museum of Costume, and lots of shops, restaurants, festivals, and unusual street performers. The oldest house in Bath, built in 1482, belonged to Sally Lunn, who was well-known for her bread baking, and there’s a restaurant in the house that serves the huge “Bath Buns.” Pulteney Bridge, which will remind you of the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, has shops along both sides, and there’s a café where you can sit and look at the river. Jane Austen lived in Bath, and there’s a museum that’s a replica of her home and gift shop there. It’s fun to walk around the streets of Bath and look at the architecture; there are marvelous Victorian and Georgian houses everywhere, and the churches, such as Bath Abbey, are beautiful works of art. Bath makes a nice day trip from London.
Stratford-on-Avon is also a popular day trip from London, and you stop by Oxford on the way up. Shakespeare was born and buried in Stratford, and you can visit his house and the church where he’s buried. There’s a museum there with a collection of Shakespeare manuscripts, and his plays are performed in Stratford’s Royal Shakespeare Theater. Walking along the Avon River is very pleasant; you can picnic, there are ducks and geese to feed, and you can see the canal boats lined up along the river. In Shottery, a couple of miles from Stratford, is Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, which belonged to Shakespeare’s wife’s family; it’s a lovely thatched-roof farmhouse with beautiful natural gardens. If you walk around Stratford, you will come upon many spots that have some reference to Shakespeare’s life; there are many shops and restaurants on Henley Street if you want a Shakespeare souvenir.
In Oxford, you can see the 39 colleges that make up Oxford University, and be amazed at the beautiful architecture. The first college, Balliol College, was founded in 1263, and is beside Blackwell and Trinity Colleges, on Broad Street; Hertford College has the Bridge of Signs, which looks like its namesake in Venice, and The Tower of Five Orders has columns from each of the five orders of classical architecture. Magdalene College (and street and bridge) are pronounced “maudlin,” and Worcester is “Wuuster,” which you probably already know if you’re from Boston. If you want to engage in an activity in Oxford other than walking, rent a punt (a boat that holds about 6 people) and learn to pole it down the river. It’s fun after you get the hang of it, and you can see lots of ducks, geese, swans, and sometimes competitive rowers on the river; watch the swans closely or they’ll steal your lunch.
Canterbury is very near London, and is on the way to Dover, where you can catch a ferry to Calais, France. Canterbury has an amazing cathedral with a rich history; Thomas Becket was murdered by four knights of Henry II in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170. Medieval Christians made pilgrimages to the church, as in Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales,” and there have been 104 Archbishops of Canterbury. The architecture is remarkable, and there’s a square outside the main entrance (Christchurch Gate) called Buttermarket; if you’re lucky you’ll be at the cathedral when the bells are ringing. There are parts of the wall that used to surround the city and the remains of a castle, and if you walk around Canterbury you will see all kinds of interesting buildings.
You can take a train or bus from London to Windsor, which takes about 30-45 minutes. Windsor has a castle that has been the home of the British royals for over 900 years; it was first started as a fort on the Thames River by William the Conqueror, and then other royals added towers, apartments, and additional buildings, making it into a palace. You can visit the gardens and the state rooms, and sometimes the semi-state rooms, and there are many other interesting attractions there. I especially like Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House, a miniature mansion that has the most perfect little details, St. George’s Chapel, where 10 monarchs are buried, including Henry VIII, and the “murder holes,” openings in archways where boiling liquids or rocks could be thrown on invading intruders. The changing of the guard takes place on some days, and sometimes you can see the royal family there as the ceremony is held. Eton, the famous private school, is across the river from the castle, and walking around the town of Windsor is pleasant. There are many shops and restaurants, and if you want a picnic lunch, go to the back of Marks and Spencer and choose from their extensive collection of take-out food.
There are many nice places to spend a day near London, and most attractions are easy to reach. Tours are readily available if you want to leave the driving and directions to professionals and you can learn lots of information about the sites on the guided tours. If you want to go on your own and spend your time as you see fit, you can reach all of the above places by train, bus, or car from London.
